Al-Qaeda in Yemen call for jihad

Said al-Shihri, the deputy chief of al-Qaeda's wing in the Yemen, has called for Muslims in the region to wage holy war against Christians and Jews.



Photo: A Yemen soldier stands atop a hill overlooking the capital Sanna (AFP/Getty Images)

Al-Qaeda in Yemen call for jihad
From The Daily Telegraph
Published: 6:59PM GMT Monday 08 February 2010

In an audio message posted on the internet Said al-Shihri, a former inmate of the US prison in Guantánamo Bay, urged followers "to attack the interests of America and the Crusaders."

He continued: "We advise you, our people in the peninsula, to prepare and carry your weapons and to defend your religion and yourselves and to join your mujahideen brothers."

The message is the first time that al-Shihri has surfaced since a December 24 air strike by Yemeni forces that targeted him and other al-Qaeda figures.

Yemeni authorities initially claimed that he had been killed, but this was later denied by al-Qaeda.

Yemen is in the throes of a major crackdown on the global militant network's regional offshoot, which grabbed the world's attention when it claimed a failed bomb attack on US-bound plane in December.

Al-Shihri congratulated Nigerian radical Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab for his "blessed" attempt to blow up the Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas.

The authenticity of the statement could not be independently confirmed but it was posted on a website commonly used for militant messages.

Saudi Arabia has long feared al-Qaeda will take advantage of the Yemen's lawless regions to build a solid base of operations there from which it can threaten the whole peninsula. The offshoot al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula was formed a year ago, when Yemen and Saudi militant groups merged.

African leaders urged to tackle al-Qaeda threat

African leaders urged to tackle al-Qaeda threat
AFP report by Helen Vesperini, Feb 02 2010 06:54 via Mail & Guardian:

(ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA) - Senegal's president urged African leaders on Monday to join forces in the fight against al-Qaeda's North African branch, saying the network's campaign was taking on "new and disturbing" forms.

Abdoulaye Wade's appeal came as African Union heads of state gathered to tackle the continent's crises and conflicts at the bloc's 14th summit.

"We must organise a round table with neighbouring countries to resolve the issue" of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the veteran Wade said in an interview on the sidelines of the summit in the Ethiopian capital.

"This desert terrorism is taking new and very disturbing forms ... But countries like Senegal, or Mali, can do nothing on their own. It is an international problem. Western powers will have to intervene too," he said.

The Senagalese leader also raised the alarm over arms trafficking in the African Sahel region, saying "Western powers should also get involved", without elaborating.

The North African branch of Osama bin Laden's terror network has threatened to execute a French hostage kidnapped in Mali in November. The group is also holding five other European hostages in the region.

Wade also said he hoped the military junta in Senegal's neighbour Guinea "will respect their pledge not to participate in elections" this year, insisting an accord brokered by Burkina Faso "is just a beginning and we must remain vigilant".

He was speaking as African Union leaders tackled rising tensions in oil-rich, secessionist southern Sudan and other African troublespots on the penultimate day of their summit.

Libyan leader Moammar Gadaffi, who on the opening day had to relinquish the 53-state body's presidency to Malawi, warned Sudan could become "another Somalia".

Tension has been escalating in Sudan in the run-up to a 2011 referendum in which the south is widely expected to choose independence from Khartoum, only six years after signing a peace deal.

Many observers fear that a secession in oil-rich Sudan -- Africa's largest country, bordering nine others -- could further destabilise one of the continent's most volatile regions.

"If the South has a right to separate itself then there'll be danger for the South," Gadaffi told a press conference Sunday, arguing that secession could leave a weakened South vulnerable to outsiders who "covet" its oil resources.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who attended the first day of the summit, also put special emphasis on the fate of Sudan.

"The UN has a big responsibility with the AU to maintain peace in Sudan and make unity attractive ... This year will be crucially important for Sudan with the election in three months and the referendum in a year," he said on Sunday.

"In the AU we believe that till the last minute we should work with all the Sudanese stakeholders to be sure we promote peace in the country," AU Peace and Security Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra, told journalists.

He said the AU respected the will of the Sudanese people but: "Nevertheless, we are making sure that unity is attractive."

But for Bona Malwal, a member of the Sudanese delegation and ambassador to the AU, south Sudan is already on a path towards secession.

"It is already too late. We have asked this help for a long time. But now the people of the south have made up their mind. They are in favour of independence. Time is running out," he said.

"The international community can still be involved to help the two parties to handle the aftermath of the referendum in a peaceful manner," he said.

"The Khartoum government will never stop the decision of the people of the South."

The African leaders were also to discuss the conflict in Somalia, where the bloc's embattled peacekeeping force came under fresh Islamist militia attacks late on Sunday, claiming the lives of 12 civilians. - AFP